Kage
by Fulcon
Summary: The creator of Naruto launches a contest gives six people across the world a chance of a life time: To become part of the Naruto Manga. Can Naruto deal with the changes that are sure to come? Naruto centric from chapter 2 and every chapter afterwords.
1. Prologue

_I do not own Naruto. I just own this random OC guy. _

* * *

About me.

First off, I have a very extensive collection of manga. From the very first manga volume ever published to the newest of every series (yes, I even have _that_ volume.)

Second off, I live in Dallas Texas.

Third off, I am male.

And fourth and final, my life _completely_…_ totally_… _sucks!_

Why, you ask, does my life suck?

Because of something my mom announced this, which was meant to be, glorious Saturday morning that we're _moving_. To _Oklahoma. Oh_, the fights I'm going to get into. I worship the Dallas cowboys…and they hate them. I know it's kinda stupid from an outsiders view to fight about sports…but Sports…is a serious subject. One we're willing to die over. (So don't insult the cowboys, or my Black-belt moves will kill you. And I don't care that I'll go to prison, either.)

But, hey…there has to be an upside right? Shonen Jump started to e-mail (about 10:00 this morning by my calculation) the winners of the _Naruto: Reboot!_ (Translated, by me, the super-intelligent) sweep-stakes. Winners get e-mailed every two hours. The winners get 10 million dollars. You heard me. 10 million dollars. But there's a catch. When you registered (no form with the novels, you have to do it online), you had to go through a hundred question quiz. And those questions sometimes asked about something so obscure, I literally had to spend _days_ pouring over my manga. And watch those infernal dubbed episodes because sometimes the question was about the _difference_ between the line they used in _Japanese_ anime and the _English dub_. But hey, I think I won.

I leaned back in my chair, scooting back as I pondered what to write next, the words escaping me. A habit of mine, I began chewing on the eraser as I looked at my room. Everything was already packed, except for my desk, my computer and my bed. The blue sheets rested neatly on the mattress, not a wrinkle showing.

Yes me, Devon Chase, the hot-shot cowboy manga-nerd from Houston Texas, am confidant about his chances of winning. Or my chances of winning. Whichever seems more comfortable to you as I write this in my dia-my journal.

Ten Million dollars. _That_ would mean I wouldn't have to move. And there's only six winners. What luck, I think that only _five_ people got every question right. Me included.

So yeah, that's about me. And the contest.

Though, I don't understand why it was called _Naruto: Reboot!_ I really don't. Does anyone? I suppose the guys at Shonen do, but not me. Are they rebooting the series for some reason? Nah, that'd kill the fan base. Do they want to know just how _obsessed_ some of the fans are? Do they _really_ need to have a _contest_ to see that? All they'd have to do is drop by Deviantart or FF and they'd know _precisely_ how obsessed some people are.

Not that I can draw…or write…but I still got every question right, right? Right.

So…where was I before I doddled on about the contest? Oh, right. How I hate moving. So anyway, my plan upon getting to school up there is to put on a Cowboys jersey on my first day-

"Devon!" The sweet but loud voice came from the beautiful woman known as my mother. "Lunch!"

_Oh, well…_ I said as I put down the pencil I was fiddling with, trying to decide what to write in my journal. _At least I have a cool mom…_ "COMING!" I yelled down as I walked out of my room and down the stairs to the kitchen. The kitchen floor board's shiny finish gleamed in the afternoon sun coming from the back-door window. The table was a darker shade of wood, and lacked the shine of the floor, but still looked good. On the table was a plate with a BLT on top. My mom had made my favorite sandwich. "Mom, I love you…" I said, sitting down to devour my sandwich. I at in a manner that would've made the cookie monster proud.

"I love you too, honey." My mom replied, looking up with a smile. She was slender, her tan skin and blue eyes accented her face _perfectly_. See? I told you. Moms are beautiful. (And thankfully she takes me on her work outs with Dad so I can have abs too. I didn't disappoint, my six pack looks _awesome_!)

"Mom, I'll be up in my room if you need me." I said as I stood up, and began walking up the step to my room.

"Alright, Honey." Mom said sweetly behind me. The clatter of dishes suggested that mom was packing them into the dishwasher to be washed one last time before being packed.

I hate mo-what am I doing? Stop moping, me! Okay, just head up the stairs, and check my e-mail. You won, dude.

I sat down in my chair again, the chair creaking under my weight. I turned my computer on, and after waiting for it to boot up, I clicked on my web browser. Drumming my fingers on my desk, I waited for it to load (stupid crappy internets)…"Ah! 3 new mail!"

I clicked on the mail icon, and viewed my messages, each represented in bold print. "E-Mail from Ashley, junk mail and _Contest Results_…" My hand moved on auto-pilot as it moved to the Contest Results subject and clicked. A video window opened in my browser. Oooooooh, fancy. On the screen, a man, with dark hair and slanted eyebrows in a black suit sitting at a desk appeared.

"_Congratulations, Devon Chase. You, along with six others across the planet, are the grand-prize recipients of the __**Naruto: Reboot!**__ Contest._" I felt my vision go hazy as he said this. I suspected I won, but hearing him say that kinda knocked the sense out of me. "_As you know, this means you win 10,000,000_. _Now, before you celebrate, I have a…proposition for you. The reason the contest entry was so…difficult…was to actually test your knowledge. Why, you ask? Because I want to ask you…do you want to become part of the __**Naruto**__ universe?_"

I felt myself gag at this. Was he offering me a chance to become a canon sue? Yeah, right! I'm not going to have myse-

"_I'm not offering you a sudden spot on the show. If you will download and install the software that came with this e-mail, you'll find I'm offering you much more than that. I'm offering you a chance to restart your life into the series. To throw yourself into the universe. So you can participate in the academy, the Chunin exams, everything._" I felt myself appalled by this. Was he really going to _restart_ the whole series? _The whole Naruto series_? Does he think the fandom would stand for that? Who is this guy, anyway? The guy on the screen leaned forward, joining his hands together as he did so. "_Before you think I'm crazy, I ask you to install the software. When you run it, touch the screen. If you do not…get what I'm trying to say, you may think I'm crazy. If you find you do not want to, simply uninstall the software. I'll know you said no._ _Good by…and if you said 'yes'…good luck._"

What…the heck? What just happened? What was he talking about?

I quickly clicked on the addition to the e-mail. A window popped up and asked me if I wanted to download it. Saying yes, partially because I wanted to have reason to call him crazy, the software downloaded. And then I installed it.

So…what now?

Upon installation, a new window popped up, with the same man. He had a small smile on. "_Hello, again_. _Just one thing I need to tell you before you get onto it. If you choose to use the software, be warned. You will be literally 'born again.' You will not be 17. You will be a baby at the start. With new parents. But on the off chance you should die, you will be sent back here, as if nothing happened. Any changes you've made to the series will be left intact, however. Also, if you choose to go to Konohagakure, you will not meet Naruto until you get to the academy, and you will not be placed on the same team as him. Or Sakura. Or Sasuke. They will remain together._" He said. Oh, good. I didn't want to be like one of those idiot fan-ficcers who put themselves as friends of Naruto before Iruka. I wouldn't even try until he's on Team 7. "_Now…good luck._"

The man had disappeared, and the screen had gone white. Confused, I moved my mouse. In the upper-right corner was a box with an 'X' through it. I clicked it, and my desktop returned to normal. In the lower-right corner, a speech bubble appeared, asking; "_Do you want to activate the portal again?_"

Now, I had a bit better idea of what was going on. I _was_ going to be one of those sues that re-wrote canon with themselves inside. DANG IT! But as I pondered the sheer stupidity of this, I began to think…how it might be just a little bit of fun to screw around with cannon. Then I realized that's probably what ficcers thought when they wrote this stuff. And then I was disgusted. So disgusted, that I clicked the speech bubble and my screen went white again. _…touch the screen…_ I recalled him saying. I was hesitant to put finger prints on my new monitor, but hey, I wanted reason to call him nuts…

Putting my fingers up, I decided to lightly touch the monitor. Closing my eyes, I felt my hand touch…water? Opening my eyes, I saw my hand half way through the screen. Yelling in shock, I pulled it out, sending ripples through the '_portal_'.

_He's not nuts…_ I remember thinking. _He is not nuts. It's a portal…and he's giving me a chance to screw around with Naruto canon._ Another two words went through my mind. _HOLY CRAP!_

Putting my hand to the monitor again, it went into the water. I felt wet, not cold, not hot, just _wet_. _Should I dive in and have fun? Restart my life so I can mess around with what's already considered canon with no risk __**on top**__ of the Ten million grand prize…oh, man…man, man, man…_

I continued to push my hand forward until my entire arm was submerged into the computer screen. Then I pulled out just as easily as I went in. _And he did say that when I die, I'll just pop back here like nothing had ever happened…Mom and Dad'll never know…_

Just an indulgence of curiosity, I closed my eyes, took a deep breath and put my head through the screen. I felt like I had just submerged my head in water. Opening my eyes, I just saw white. I pulled my head out. My hair didn't _feel_ like it was just doused, so it's _magical water_, or something. Just out of stupidity, I wondered if I could _breathe _the magic water. So, I plunged my nose into my monitor and _inhaled_.

I waited for the sensation of water running up my nose, and the feeling of drowning…but I got nothing. I was breathing normal.

"Huh…" I was rubbing my chin as I pondered these events. Whoever that guy was, or _whatever_ that guy was, knew what he was doing.

And so, he probably knew that I would want to make myself who I wanted to be. And so, closing the portal, I fired up my web browser. I had research to do.

Specifically, what name I wanted to have, if it let me choose. I already decided that I wanted to be in _Iwagakure no Sato_ due to its immense similarity to my favorite state (AKA: Texas).

Okay, after a few minutes of quick searching, I have my name. _Chiba (thousand feathers) Kaito (big dipper of the ocean)_.

Now, without further ado, I open the portal. I take a deep breath, and begin going inside the portal. After some work and negotiations with my desk, I was now inside the portal.

And then it felt like I was moving. At high speeds. Looking behind, I saw the window that saw into my room get smaller and smaller as I moved farther and farther away. Looking ahead, I saw another window get bigger and bigger. It was the same guy I saw in the video. I landed on the carpet of the room on my feet, staggering a bit before recovering from the loss of speed.

Okay, I am now officially convinced: The guy now sitting in front of me is not nuts.

"Hello there, Devon." He said, his face breaking into a large smile. "I trust the journey wasn't _too_ bad."

"I'll live…" I replied, taking a seat on the chair in front of his desk. "So…where am I?"

"_You_ are in my office." He said, taking a sip from a mug that I hadn't noticed before. "We haven't met, and I haven't introduced myself. My name is _Kishimoto Masashi_."

I felt my eyes go wide. No way. The creator of Naruto…here?! I'm in his _office_?! "Pleasure to meet you…sir?"

"Good to hear it." He said, pulling a form outlined in red from a desk drawer. "Fill this out, please. If you have any questions, feel free to ask."

"Oooookay…" I took the form. Masashi handed me a mechanical pencil. The first thing on the form was Shinobi Name: Given: Family. Under given name I put _Kaito_ and under family name, I put _Chiba_. The next question: Desired Village: _Iwagakure no Sato_.

Under that was a large box with many horizontal lines drawn through. On the top of the box, it said: _Please give the name of your Desired Kekkei Genkai, and its effects on you._

This was a tough one. As a member of Iwagakure, I couldn't have access to the Byakugan or the Sharingan. Or any other that I know of. So I went with my favorite super-power (super-hearing), and put that I don't have a name for it. There. And put that the chakra used to fuel the hearing also eliminates any pain I would receive from hearing things that were 'too loud'

After that were my desired family members. I put _regular clan_ for that, and I was done. And I handed Masashi my form. He put it into a mechanical scanner. "Thank you. Oh, and before you go, I just have one thing to say. In your adventure, your memory will be wiped so you can be…more capable…of adjusting to your new life."

"What?" I found myself barking. Stupid Devon! Stupid!

"But don't fret." He continued, raising his hands in a shield like fashion. "I will put an MP3 player that you are sure to find on your first mission. Upon finding that, the seal on your mind will be broken. Is that okay?"

"I guess…" I mumbled. I was not happy with having my brain messed with.

"And on it has every song that has ever been written in our world." He said.

"Everyone?" I perked up. Uber MP3. Yes…I just had to find it…without any idea that I was supposed to find it. Great. He had me perked up there for a second…

"And on the off chance you _don't _find it, I'll send it to you via Dimension mail. Okay?" He was smiling again.

I nodded, feeling my eyes glaze over. I wasn't going to see anyone familiar for a _long_ time.

"Good!" He said. With a cranking sound, a trap door opened beneath me, and I fell back into the portal. And I knew no more.

* * *

"Alright, everyone. May we have your attention, please?" Masashi had just come from his office, and now speaking into a microphone, sitting atop a podium to a large group of assorted political leaders and military generals, all brought together to hear the results of the new transdementional technology. It having much significance in scientific and military matters. "All the contestants have been successfully transported into my manga series, and the technology is a success thus far."

A round of applause ensued.

"I would like to thank all of you, especially the United States and Japanese governments for footing the bill and allowing me to add several colorful characters to my series." Masashi said, and another round of applause erupted (though noticeably less enthusiastic.)

"Happy to pay the bills, Masashi." Came the loud voice of George W. Bush, current President of the United States of America.

"For those of you who are curious, there are three people from Japan, one person from East Germany and two people from the United States. Please wish them luck and pray for them. They'll need it. And now I turn the time over to professor Wakasashi, and he will go over what else needs to be done to ensure this technologies fullest implementation." At that, he left as a man, not much taller than Masashi walked up to the podium. His assistant, a pretty young woman was waiting for him, a Naruto manga volume in hand, un-opened.

"Sir, are you going back to the office, or are you going home?" She asked formally as she handed Masashi the manga volume.

"I'm going home." Masashi said, for the first time all day, weariness was in his voice. "I wanna see how my series has…changed."

* * *

_Authors Notes: This is the only chapter in the POV of an OC. The rest shall be in the rightful hands of Naruto._

_Also, the next chapter will take place right after the Bells test, with Naruto about to get the Land of Waves mission._

_Should I make any changes to that Arc? Should I make it so the Bridge Builder was able to afford two teams of Genin with two sensei's instead of just one? Or should I just start next chapter after that as well?_

_Meh, I don't care. Just review! _


	2. Chapter 1

_I don't own Naruto. _

* * *

"Hey, Sakura-Chan!" I yelled, waving at my favorite team-mate. Haruno Sakura always wore her hair long, coming almost down to her waist. It was pink, unlike most other Kunoichi, and she wore a red out-fit. She turned away from whoever was standing in the doorway talking to her to glare at me. The way her emerald eyes shifted to a glare as she saw me told me that I was late…as usual.

"Naruto-baka! You're late again!" Sakura yelled at me. I swear, she's _really, really __**scary**_ when's she's angry. I grinned, and backed away a bit so I had a better chance of dodging if she chose to hit me with one of those _sledge-hammers_.

"S-sorry, Sakura-Chan. My alarm didn't go off." I stuttered out. Stupid! Stupid! Way to act in front of Sakura! Now she'll think I'm a coward, and-

"Baka. You should've made sure it was set right." Came a familiar voice from the door-way. Uchiha Sasuke always wore a blue t-shirt and light gray shorts, a kunai holster on his leg and a typical bag of ninja tools on his belt. That guy always just makes me _so maaaad_…

"Oh yeah, Sasuke-teme? Well I'll-"I took a couple of steps forward. Okay, so he's my teammate…doesn't mean I have to take it, right? Unfortunately, that meant I moved too close to Sakura, and that means…

"NARUTO!!" She yelled, pounding her fist into my face, sending me to the ground in an instant.

"S-s-Sakura…" I moaned, rubbing my pour face. Nice going. Now she hates me _even more_. What does Sasuke have _that I don't_?

"APOLOGIZE TO SUSUKE-KUN RIGHT NOW!" Sakura yelled. Looking (for about half a second) I saw that she was in one of her scary moods again. Did I want to apologize to Sasuke-teme? No. But did I want to tick Sakura off anymore than I already had? _No, absolutely not_.

"Alright, enough messing around, we have an appointment with the Hokage." Came the voice of Kakashi-Sensei. And it saved me from apologizing to Sasuke. Standing up, I scratched my head in embarrassment. "Right, Sensei. Let's get going! Don't want to be late!"

Oh, I _hope_ beyond hope that I get a Class-_above D rank mission_. _Please, please, PLEASE! _I beg whatever powers that be for a mission that is _C rank or higher. PLEEEEAAAASE!_

Me, Sasuke and Sakura followed Kakashi sensei up the stairs. Sasuke, of course, tried to step ahead of me. I wouldn't fall behind, so I kept up step, all the while feeling Sakura's heated glare behind me. We stopped at when Kakashi-sensei stopped at the Hokage's office door and knocked.

Sakura stepped up next to me and whispered in my ear, "You're still going to apologize to Sasuke."

Oh, that's just _great_.

The Hokage told us to enter. Going in, Sakura telling me how I'm going to apologize the whole time, I saw the Hokage sitting at his desk. To the left of his desk, I saw three kunoichi and one male ninja and their Sensei. I recognized them as Team 13. What are they doing here? I thought they were in the Hospital for mental injuries!

Their sensei, Mitarashi Anko greeted Kakashi cheerfully. "Hey, Kakashi! How're you doing?"

"I'm doing well, Anko. I see your Genin are out of the Hospital." Kakashi said, addressing the other group of Genin. They bowed at Kakashi, addressing him formally. Then they waved at us, smiling cheerfully. Even at me! They all thought I was just annoying before!

Keruda Riko, a Kunoichi with long dark hair. She often wore netted clothes and a jacket. She had her Hitai-ate around her forehead like her companions. "Hey, Sasuke! Naruto, Sakura! How's it going?"

Wait a sec…she's never even _looked_ at me before! What's going on?

"We're fine." Sakura replied, putting on a wide smile. "Just got out of the Hospital?"

"Yeah. They couldn't find anything wrong with us." Sakamoto Momiji was, like Riko, dark haired. He always wore dark, long pants and a tight black sleeveless shirt. On his belt was…a smaller forehead protector? Come to think of it, _all _of the Team 13 Genin have those on their belts. I wonder why.

Anyway, the last Genin of Team 13 is Hyuuga Kumiko has long dark hair, and usually wears white robes. Her eyes were always like Hinata's…a shade of lavender, without a pupil…in fact, I'm sure she's related to her…I'm _sure of it_! (Actually you couldn't tell from how confident Kumiko was.)

"Anko, have your Genin wait outside while I brief Team 7 on the current mission." Sarutobi told Anko.

Anko nodded. "Alright, you heard him! Outside!"

With some grumbling, they left the room. Now alone with Sasuke, Sakura and Kakashi sensei, we stood in a line. Sakura, thankfully, was focused on Sarutobi. Sasuke and Kakashi were too.

So I looked at the old man in the red and white robes and the Triangular hat. The man that currently held my future position as Hokage. The man who all the villagers looked up too. Just like I do.

And that's why I want to be Hokage. I want to be respected because of my being the Hokage instead of despised because of the Kyuubi. Because I _stop _the Fox from destroying everything, they attack me. They see me as no better. _I'm going to prove them wrong._

"We've been requested to protect a master bridge builder as hey journeys back into the land of waves." Hokage explained. "And to protect him from bandits on his travels."

"Then why are we taking _two_ teams of Shinobi? Surely one team of Genin is enough to protect one man from bandits…or is there something else?" Kakashi asked.

"There is. Anko?" Sarutobi mentioned for Anko to go ahead.

"As you all are…aware of, my team had to go to the hospital due to head injuries." She looked around to make sure we were each following.

"We know, but what's that got to do with sending them on a double mission with us?" I asked. I was lost…like usual. Man, I _hated _when that happened. Like Sakura doesn't already think I'm a baka. Great!

"Naruto! Just listen, you baka!" Sakura yelled at me.

"I'd listen to her, Naruto…" Anko chuckled. "Anyway, where was I…oh yeah. Well, that actually wasn't the case. You see, when they were born, someone put a seal on their minds."

A seal? What's that?

Anko continued "We were never able to find out what it was sealing, and even the children didn't know. They acted like normal infants, so we left them alone. However, on their first mission, they found some strange miniature forehead protectors that looked like they were designed to fit on their belts-"

"Oh yeah! I saw Momiji have that on his belt…I wondered what it was…" I stopped talking when a kunai suddenly appeared at the base of my neck. Looking to who was holding it, I saw Anko's face really close to mine, her face curled in a cat-like grin.

"Got anything else to say, or can I finish now?" Her voice was a dangerous tone of sweet. Needless to say, I got the message.

"No, go ahead." I said quickly.

"Gooood…" She lifted the kunai away from me and holstered it, throwing it into the holster on her shin. "Now as I was saying, the…things released part of the seal that was on their minds. And as you can see, their behavior has changed _immensely_. The reason we're bringing them on a mission with another team of Genin is because _The Sandaime_ wants to ensure that their loyalty to Konoha has remained intact."

"Wait, what _kind_ of seal was it?" Sakura asked. "And how'd it get onto them in the first place?"

"We still don't know." Sarutobi said. "We don't know if it was because of enemy ninja that infiltrated the nursery or _what_. As for what kind of seal, it was the type to hold and keep away memories, temporarily, from what I'm guessing, as theirs ways to permanently remove memory. So your mission is two-fold; First, keep the bridge builder safe. Second, ensure that Cell 13 is still loyal to Konoha."

There was knocking at the door. "Enter."

When the door opened, a man with graying hair and beard entered, a black tunic, straw hat and wooden back-pack and sandals are what he wore, and in his hand was a sake bottle.

"Who's that?" I asked. He looked at me over his square glasses.

"Who's the shrimp with the idiotic look on his face?" He asked, a look of massive impatiance on his faces.

"Who's the shrimp wit the idiotic look on his face…?" I asked, looking at Sasuke and Sakura. They responded by moving closer to me, and I measured our hights. So the answer was clear. _I'm _the shrimp with the idiotic look on his face. And my response was also clear.

"_HEY! I'M NOT A SHRIMP! I_" I yelled, lunging for him, yelling how I was going to pound some sense about who he's dealing with into him. How _dare_ he insult my height! I'll show him! But as I was about to beat some sense into the old man, I felt something grab me. It was Kakashi sensei.

"Naruto…you can't…pound-the-client! Hold still…Anko, help me!" Kakashi was actually having trouble holding onto me! Cool! I knew I was stronger than he thought! I- Uh-oh. Kunai. Stop moving.

"You wanna be fried for dinner? Then I suggest you stop trying to pound the client, _shrimp_." Anko whispered dangerously in my ear. I stopped moving. Man she's_ psychotic_! Not even _Sakura_ can scare me like she can!

Kakashi released me, and I folded my arms, turning away from the 'client.' Boy, if I ever get the chance, he'll be _sorry_…

"These, and the kids outside are part of the Shinobi that will be protecting you as you make your journey back to the land of waves, Tazuna." Sarutobi explained, guestering toward us.

"What the…They're mostly kids…" The Old man sniffed as I turned to look at him. "I'm a master bridge builder who must return to his country. I'm building a bridge that will change our lives, and I have to get there safely, no matter what the cost. Are you sure they can do this…?"

"_Look, Old Man_!" I said hotly, uncrossing my arms. "You may think we're just kids, and that we may not be able to do this, but I'll tell you one thing. Because it's our mission,_ we'll get you there safe and in one piece. __**Understand**_?"

Boy, this guy sure got on my nerves.

"You got a name, kid?" Tazuna asked, smirking.

"My name is _Uzumaki Naruto_!" I yelled, giving him a thumbs up and a smile. "Believe it!"

* * *

_Author's Notes: For the record, I shall NOT have Naruto be saying 'believe it' NEARLY as much as he does in the anime, so it won't be annoying. Actually, he might say it almost never. BONUS!  
_

_Also, on the OC's, yeah you've met them. And I just one thing to say about the Hyuuga. MY SUE SENSES WERE TINGLING. So I did the one thing that anybody would do. Find a way to power her down and make her non-sue like. And so I think I did a good job. __**You'll see**__…_

_And if Naruto or ANYONE is out of character, you think, PM me. (And I'll either take your critism with a song in my heart or I'll defend myself military style.)_

_R&R!_


	3. Chapter 2

_The only things I own are not actually a part of the established Naruto Canon._

* * *

"Yeah-ha-ha!" I was psyched. I was going on my _first_ C-Rank mission! Me, Sakura, Sasuke, Kakashi-sensei and Team 13 with…with…what was the old guys name again…Tazuna! We're on our way to the land of waves, and I'm so _excited_! I was packed, all the things I was bringing with me in my pack.

"What're _you_ so excited about?" Sasuke sniffed behind me. He was being a jerk. As usual.

"We're _finally _getting a mission worthy of my talents!" I exclaimed as we (being me, Sakura, Kakashi, Sasuke and Cell 13) walked out of the gate.

"Don't you mean _our_ talents?" Sakura asked, looking angry at me. I hate it when she's mad at me.

"O-of _course_, Sakura-Chan! I didn't mean that you weren't-"I quickly stuttered out.

"Oh, give it a rest you two." Sasuke sounded annoyed.

"Yeah, Sakura!" Riko said in a bright tone. "You should be nicer to Naruto-san."

I felt my (and saw Sakura's) jaw drop. _What is with her?_ I mean, she's one of Sakura's friends, she openly states that she thinks I'm annoying, wants me to die, and _now_ she thinks that Sakura_ should be nicer_ to me! I'm not complaining, and whatever those seals contained, I'm kinda glad she got those memories back.

"But you…but he…WHAT?" Sakura yelped in surprise, clearly shocked at her friends change in attitude.

"I'm…just…saying…" Riko said, clearly taken aback by Sakura's tone at her suggestion. "Maybe…you know…he's _not… completely useless_."

"Oh, just shut up, both of you." Kumiko sounded irritated, and looked it from how her hand was slapped against her forehead.

"Oy, oy, oy…we're in for a _loooong_ journey…" Tazuna mumbled, barely loud enough for me to hear.

"Hey, guys? Stop fighting before I stick you full of Kunai." Anko threatened, waving a kunai at us. That shut us up _instantly_.

Kakashi sensei was just standing there shaking his head before we resumed our journey. The Land of Waves is a long way off…and I was _determined _to succeed this mission.

* * *

Okay…why did I want to go on this mission again? We've been walking for hours, and not a single drip of excitement. _None_! Where's the bandits? Where are the baka's that I'm supposed to be protecting this geezer from?

"Oh!" I spoke my boredom outloud. "I can't believe this! Where're the bandits? I thought you were in danger, old man!"

"Oh, stop whining you baka!" Sakura yelled out from ahead of me. She was walking besides Sasuke-teme. Why can't she walk beside ME for once? What's so great about Sasuke? He never even gives her the time of day!

"Sakura-chan, I'm just _saying_…" I said, putting my hands behind my head.

"Oh, come on, Naruto… I'm sure it'll get _really _exciting soo-" Riko began, but she was cut off by Kumiko.

"Guys. Puddle." Kumiko said quickly. She was glaring at a rather large puddle in the middle of the road. Big deal, it's a puddle. So what if we get wet? She's probably worried about getting wet and ruining her shoes, like she always was. But…why did she stop? And why did the veins around her eye's suddenly bulge?

Riko and Momiji stopped too, glaring at the same puddle. Riko had a shurikan in her hand, and Momiji had a pair of long, curved kunai in his hands. What's going on? Were they all scared of water or something?

Well, that's what I thought, then I saw Kakashi-sensei and Anko-sensei stopped too, Anko being two steps ahead. She had a shurikan in her hand, and Kakashi…just had his hands in his pockets. At least _one_ of us is acting normal.

At least that's what I thought. With a massive _splash_, there was _four enemy ninja_ rushing at us. Each with a hitai-ate that I did _not_ recognize, and with a clawed, metallic cylinder gauntlets and in grey out-fit. And they were running at _us_! So fast…

I hate to admit it. I truly hate to admit it. But I was scared out of my mind. I've _never_ come across an enemy ninja before!

Huge chains erupted from their gauntlets, and before I knew it, Kakashi-sensei _was blown to pieces! I thought he was supposed to be a Jonin, for crying out loud!_

A sharp pain on my hand shot threw me, and one of the enemy shinobi was behind me! "You're next, kid!" He cried out, and a chain started to wrap around me, each link spiked and razor sharp…

Then they flew away. The chain was actually deflected by a shurikan in the center, and had bound _two_ of the nin to a tree. Then it was followed by a kunai, locking it in place. Sasuke, _Sasuke! Of all people!_ Had thrown the shurikan and kunai, and had his feet firmly planted on the two nin's gauntlets. Then he gave the both of them a swift kick in the face.

Looking over, I saw that Momiji slicing like a mad-man at one, but missing everytime. Then Riko nailed him in the back with a kunai. They nodded to each other, grinning. They planned that or something…

Kumiko had settled for soloing one…but then one of the nin got in my vision, and was headed right for me! Can't move! Can't get out of the way! _I'm going to die!_

Then four kunai stuck themselves in his back, and Anko-sensei was standing above him, _smirking_. "Wow. For all the tough talk, I expected you to _at least_ be able to move. Huh. Coward."

She added that last word in an undertone, barely loud enough to hear. But I heard it. _Loud and Clear_. She called me a coward, and then run off (to help Kumiko, whos strikes didn't seem to do _anything_). And the worst part of it was…I couldn't yell at her for it, because she was _right_!

I was a coward.

"Hey…you're not _hurt_, are you?" It was Sasuke. And he looked very, _very smug_. "_Scaredy cat?_"

_Dang it! Does he have to be the best at everything?! It's like he was SENT here to be better than me!_ I just stood there, with a stupid look on my face. I could feel something warm trickle down my hand. I looked down. Oh, my hand was bleeding.

That was nothing. _I just found out that I was a COWARD. I gave Sasuke a reason to call me a SCAREDY CAT_. _DAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGG IIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTTTT!!_

"Naruto!" It was Kakashi. He was alive! I saw the pile of cut wood that had taken the place of his shattered body. He had used the substitution jutsu. _Idiot!_ Why didn't I see that?! Maybe I wouldn't have frozen up so bad if I saw that. But I didn't. "These Shinobi have poison in their claws. Don't move, that makes it move and spread faster. We need to head back to Konohagakure to get you medical attention. And _you_, Tazuna-san…"

Tazuna froze up as Anko came up behind him, having tied up the nin to a tree. "You have some_ explaining _to do…"

They're taking me back to Konohagakure because I was too cowardly to be useful. I…no. I can't let them do that. I'll get the poison out _myself!_ Drawing my Kunai, I sliced at where the wound was, re-opening it. The I watched was the black poison mixed with red blood dripped out. "I was useless today. I didn't do anything and I was useless. Upon this wound, I make this pledge: I will _never_ be a coward again and need saving. I'll never again put my friends in danger because of my cowardice _again_. _And I won't lose to Sasuke_."

Pretty soon the blood was a pure red, and that meant the poison was all out. I smiled and chuckled, feeling better about myself now. "We're continuing the mission."

"Naruto…" Kakashi adressed me. "How got the poison out was _really cool_…but if you keep bleeding like that, you're going to _die_."

"Little baka…" Anko chuckled to herself.

I felt myself go very cold inside. Then Kakashi was right beside me. "It would be a good idea to stop the bleeding now. _Seriously_…"

"ACK!" I yelled wagging my hand over in over again. "I'm to young to die like this…!"

"I didn't remember it being _this_ bad back in Tokyo…" Momiji said, rubbing his forehead. Wait…what's Tokyo? Is that something from his seal? I'll have to ask him about it later.

"Naruto, stop being such a Masochist!" Sakura yelled at me, ticked off that I would hurt myself like this.

"Give me your hand…" Kakashi said, holding out his hand. I put mine in his.

Kakashi looked at it. Soon his eyes began to get a bit bigger and his expression (from what I can see) got more and more serious…he looked very _very_ _**grave**_. _I'm going to die_…

"Umm…Kakashi sensei…" I said. He looked up at me, his expression unchanging. "You have this really _serious_ expression on your face, you're _scaring_ me, am I going to be okay?"

"Sure…You'll be fine just let me bandage that up really quick." Kakashi began quickly wrapping my hand in bandages. "Oh, and Momiji…care to explain your comment just now?"

"Huh?" Momiji asked, looking a bit clueless. "Which comment?"

"You _know_…" Kakashi said, putting emphasis on the 'know'. "The comment where you mentioned something called 'Tokyo'?"

"Hey _yeah_!" I yelled, exstatic that I remembered it too. "I heard you say something about you not remembering…something….something…Tokyo!"

That certainly got something out of him. That was _definantly _from the sealed memories. "What? Did I say that? I don't know what that is…" He began to make a very long line of excuses of not knowing the thing about his own comment.

"Yeah, come one…I'm sure he just let slip that word without thinking about it or knowing what it was…" Kumiko said, walking behind Momiji. "And I'm _sure _that anything he could say that could make you curious won't happen again…_right_, Momiji?"

"Yeah…Right…" Momiji replied to his team-mate, rubbing the back of his head.

"Hmmmm…" Anko rubbed her chin. "We aren't _done_ here with that, but we have stuff that's a _little_ more important than that at the moment…"

"Momiji, you _baka_…" Riko said, punching him in the back of the head.

* * *

_Authors Notes: I hope I did Naruto's Oath of Pain justice (though I doubt it). Also, a loose third person perspective will make up the next chapter._

_I thank Spirit Seer, Alchemist Astrid and Human Kitsune Hero for their reviews!_


	4. Chapter 3

_I don't own Naruto._

* * *

The dark night sky glistened with stars. The moon was also present, hanging high in the sky, bathing the surrounding grassy plains with a beautiful glow.

On these grassy plains were 7 sleeping bags surrounding a campfire. Only one was empty, a lone figure keeping the fire stoked. She had pale, lavender eyes and long black hair that cascaded down her back. This was Hyuuga Kumiko, and her teammates were pretending to be asleep. _Pretending_ was the key word.

The three Shinobi from the real world were waiting until Team 7, Kakashi and Anko were asleep…they needed to speak with each other, and the only person among the Genin that could tell when people were sleeping was Kumiko…so she took first watch.

Kakashi and Anko…as well as Sasuke and Sakura were trying desperately to stay awake. Naruto, of course, was out like a light. Sakura was almost out, and Sasuke was not that far behind. Kakashi and Anko were little better off. Their soldier pills had gone missing…the fire had smelled a little odd and Kumiko, Momiji and Rika all seemed more alert than the rest of their comrades.

Kumiko sighed, and slipped her last soldier pill (courtesy of Momiji through Anko-Sensei) into her mouth. _Come on…fall asleep already…I'm not going to let you guys get killed…The only reason you think so is because of our sloppy cover up of Momiji's screw up…_

Finally, Sakura's breathing had become the _true_ deep breathing of slumber.

_Perfect…come on Sasuke…I'm not going to jump in your sleeping bag when your out (no matter what previous impressions you have about me and the other girls, particularly Ino)…even though it's kinda tempting…_Kumiko encouraged silently, joking at the same time. Then, on a more serious note… _Okay, I admit it. I'm a crazy fan girl. I thought you'd be more attracted to a Hyuuga due to their…our…blood limit, and what it might do for the Uchiha clan… But no…you're still crazy about killing Itachi. No attraction toward anyone…not Sakura, not me, not Ino…_

Then Sasuke's breathing deepened a bit too. He was out. _Good…now for Kakashi…I'll buy you a new Icha Icha book if you go to sleep…_

Kakashi's breathing remained at its deep level, not reacting to Kumiko's silent encouragement. She let out a quite exasperated gasp. _Never mind…you've already got them all…_

She shifted her focus to Anko, who, like Kakashi, was faking being asleep. And, like Kakashi, was doing a magnificent job. Kumiko knew…well…_guessed_ that the two were faking. _But there was a battle earlier today…and you guys did seem pretty tired…_

She decided to chance it. Kumiko stood up, and walked over to Momiji…her brother in real life… and kicked lightly. "You awake?" She whispered as softly as she could.

Momiji turned his head, his short, dark hair glistening slightly in the moon light. "Yeah…" Momiji whispered back. "They asleep?"

"As far as I can tell…" Kumiko replied quietly as Momiji stood up.

"I'm awake too." Rika was a little bit louder so the two former siblings could hear her, but not enough that anyone else could hear. Her long hair was up in a pony tail, like she did in their first mission…

_The one that enlightened the three as to_ _**what the frick **__we're doing here_. Kumiko thought, remembering touching the chakra-infused MP3 player, and having part of Masahashi's seal removed…having all her memories of her past life return to her…was quite an experience. Kumiko thought it felt like…having known your purpose in life since forever and remembering for the very first time.

The three moved over to sit by the campfire. They had planned an emergency meeting to plan what they were going to do. But none of them wanted to go first. No one even knew where to begin.

Momiji spoke first, quietly. "Well, for first statement…I would like to say sorry for yesterday…this morning…or whatever time it is."

"You'd better be sorry…" Rika almost snarled, quite. "You almost killed the manga."

"I said I was sorry…" Momiji lapsed into silence.

"Enough. Momiji said he was sorry. Rika, it could've happened to any of us." Kumiko defended her former brother.

"We all expected that the flash of info would cause suspicion. Thankfully, your Byakugan allowed us an alibi for the puddle thing, but…" Rika continued, her volume never rising. "_Tokyo? _Hello! They most _definantly_ think something's up _now_!"

"You couldn't have thought we could get through this without _someone_ finding _something_ out, did you?" Kumiko tried to reason. "As long as they don't know _all _about _it_, we're good." _It_ meaning the Real world, and the contest. "And besides, you haven't been all miss super-secret yourself."

"What'd you mean?" Rika looked at Kumiko venomously, her brown eyes only visible through Byakugan.

"You've been as mean as Sakura has been the entire time we've been here. And then you turn around and are _nice_ to him. What does-?" Kumiko explained.

"-I knew they'd find _something_ out. I just didn't think it would be _this soon_." Rika cut Kumiko off, changing the subject. "I was thinking not until a little after the exams. _Hoping_ not until Part 2."

"_Hoping_ not until Part 2 was hoping _beyond_ hope." Momiji mumbled, facing away from the arguing Kunoichi.

"I agree with _that_." Kumiko whispered. "But I was hoping not until after…" She stopped, then gestured for Rika to come closer. Rika shuffled closer. Then, as quietly as she possibly could, finished her statement by whispering in Rika's ear: "…Sasuke leaves."

"Okay…" Rika nodded. "But we should be concentrating on what we're going to do to prevent what happened today/yesterday from happening ever again."

"Yeah…" Momiji was in total agreement. "Imagine if we meet the other…guys…and they haven't spilt a thing."

"They'd be sure to laugh their heads off, I'm sure." Kumiko joked.

"Let's just agree to be super careful from now on in regards to where and who we were before…" Rika said. "We need to address my…_problem_." She said the last word with venom. "I don't think I could go back to being mean to Naruto. Especially since I know what's…with him." She felt _extremely_ guilty for treating Naruto, the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi, like crap.

"I don't think any of us can." Momiji was now facing the two Kunoichi. His words were soft, filled with regret over some of the things he did to make Naruto's life miserable, adding to it. Not that he ever actually _knew_ that Momiji had stolen his irreplaceable (due to the villages attitude to him) text book, but _still_.

"Alright, it's settled. Everyone that knows Naruto is automatically nice to him after they get to know him. We'll just go along with the flow. We'll just be a bit faster than everyone else." Kumiko said. "And _no_ saying _anything_ that might clue them off anymore. Got it?"

The others nodded.

"Good. Momiji? You got next watch, because I'm outta pills." Kumiko told her former brother before getting in her sleeping bag.

Momiji just shrugged as his former sister and his other teammate got into their sleeping bags.

"I thought _Sasuke_ got the watch after you…" Rika whispered after she settled in her bag.

"Shhhh…" Was her only reply. _Sleep well, my fan girlish crush…_

* * *

Kishimoto, Naruto's creator, was now in the story board room, planning with the team as for what to do for Part 3 of the Naruto series. The team he had assembled was fully in on the secret of the _Reboot!_ Sweepstakes.

"So we're thinking that Naruto learns to do even more with his clones…Kaito…that's Devon, right? Anyway…we're thinking that he develop his…" Yoshimitsu, the head brainstormer aside from Kishimoto brainstormed on the future capabilities of the Shinobi. _You know what I find interesting? _Kishimoto thought… _That even though those six contest winners are people from my world, they are still under our control in the events we haven't written yet._

He glanced down at his Naruto volume. _I only hope the mention of Tokyo was a one-time thing. That really caught me off guard._

"So…what do you think?" A stapled stack of paper was passed to Kishimoto with concept drawings and stats of each character from Part 3. The arc outlines that were presented to him with the stats were missing something, Kishimoto thought.

"Well, I can think of a couple of changes…" Kishimoto said, adressing the man across from him, with a goatee and glasses. "One, you know the six contest winners?"

"Yeah…?" Yoshimitsu asked, slightly abashed. "Like what?"

"The Six contest winners…I imagine by now that they want to enjoy their prize money." Kishimoto stated. "Do we have to kill them off?"

"We have too." Yoshimitsu answered. "It's part of the contract. We have to ensure that people simply pop back up from the portals after dying."

"Well…what if they don't?" Asked Kishimoto. "What if they don't pop back out…what if they're…actually _dead_?"

"Then…well, the families will have 10 million to spend." Yoshimitsu was clearly uncomfortable with the direction the conversation had taken.

_Of course…_Thought Kishimoto. _He hasn't thought about it._ _Okay…maybe I can make their 'deaths'…as painless as possible. That means being captured by Orochimaru as a death method is OUT! And maybe I can prolong the deaths too...like at the end...make it really mean something to the fandom...if they **really** die for this crazy project...they deserve no less._

* * *

_**Authors Note:**__ Well, I imagine you must be ticked. I take forever to update, and I update with a __**filler**__. Ah well, I hope it was informative._

_I thank EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU for your reviews._

Also, points to whoever can tell me whos talking in this exchange.

"Dang it! I missed!" A voice, loud and brazen voice yelled as a kunai knife zoomed away from a shurikan missing it by inches. The shurikan imbedded itself in the wall...

There was much banging and screaming down the street to my left as the kunai zoomed down. Then the kunai zoomed down onto the road infront of me, richocheting of the road and the buildings the one of the two figures, who's face I couldn't make out because of light reflecting in my eyes from a near by mirror, was watching as the kunai richocheted behind me from what I could tell. The other's head wasn't moving at all, but his foot lifted as the kunai traveled under it, bounced up, and almost hit _me_.

I dodged, and watched as the kunai's blade went and lodged itself into the wall, having gone right through the hole the center of the shurikan.

"OH MY...that was the PERFECT SHOT!" The brazen voice yelled again.

"That was entirely a fluke, and besides, it only counts if you _call _it." The other one, with a calmer, more collected voice told the first person.

"AH, THAT'S _BULL_, DUDE!

_XD_


End file.
